


Everyone is Sad and Everything is Horrible

by Broba



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Angst, Femslash February, M/M, SO SO SAD, Sad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-02
Updated: 2013-02-02
Packaged: 2017-11-27 22:05:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,222
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/666994
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Broba/pseuds/Broba
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>My good buddy REN demanded a fic for Femslash February, and when I asked for a prompt the only answer I got was the title of this fic. Well fine! Have some sad angst!</p><p>Rose and Roxy get a few things said, while they still have a chance.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Everyone is Sad and Everything is Horrible

Space is infinite and yet bounded, if you travel too far too fast you will only run into yourself. This was running through Roxy's mind as she waited, in the viewing gallery. The asteroid had been accelerating constantly, and they would soon know their fate. One entire wall was given over to an enormous viewing screen which displayed a view of their immediate course. The screen was consumed with an endless vista of boiling yellow, a polarised and dimmed view of the particular sun that they were flying towards. Roxy had taken to standing there for long periods, just thinking, calculating. She turned and took a seat, where on the table at the level of her outstretched hand a drink waited.   
  
The doorway hissed open and Sollux shuffled through it. Roxy could tell what the news was just by the uncertain pace he made across the metal tiled floor. He was carrying a sheaf of papers and as she looked up to him Sollux turned his gaze to the reams of numbers as though they would provide a sanctuary.  
“Well?” Roxy asked softly, and redundantly.  
“The numberth are thertain,” he sighed, “we haven't adjuthted our courthe by enough. Not even close.”  
Roxy nodded thoughtfully. It was as she expected, after all. She had worked valiantly to build something approaching a drive system but it was no good, the asteroid was headed inexorably into the centre of a gravity well from which it would not escape. The refrigeration systems were already working above their intended maximums dissipating the heat from the sun they were approaching, they would be doomed long before they actually came up close to it.  
“I see. Well. Thanks for checking anyway, Sol.”  
“No problem. I jutht wish I had thomething better to tell you.”  
“It's not your fault,” she said blankly, staring at the screen. It was, of course, her fault. She was the one who had argued for trying to save the asteroid instead of abandoning it, and now it was too late to do either.  
“Lithen,” he placed a hand shakily on her shoulder, “for what it'th worth, dying ithn't tho bad. Take if from thomeone who'th been there.”  
“Thanks Sol.”  
“Can I do anything elthe?”  
“No, no. I think I'd just like to stay here and have a drink.”  
“You've been doing that a lot rethently.”  
“Yeah. Why not? No point hopping back on the wagon now, right?”  
“I gueth.”  
  
Sollux departed quietly, leaving her to stare into the unblinking eye of her chosen enemy, the enemy that had finally beaten her. Did the victory go to thermodynamics of gravity? One or the other of them would finish them off soon enough. Roxy sighed and let out a dull groan. She had been so sure, too. They would fix up the old drive units and save the asteroid, save all of them, it would be great. Now, it would be nothing. Roxy knocked back the remainder of her glass and wiped her sleeve across her lips wearily. She heard the sound of the door again behind her.  
“Go awa-a-a-ay, Sol,” she called out, “you did all you could, okay? It's just the way it is.”  
“No, it's me,” came a soft voice behind her. Roxy twisted awkwardly in her seat and saw Rose approaching her across the span of the room. She wasn't dressed in her normal God-Tier outfit now, she had on a simple shift dress that looked as though it had seen better days.  
“Rose? What is it?”  
“Sollux told me the results. Is he right?”  
“Mm. Yeah. I'm sorry,” she nearly chocked on the word and hid it behind a hiccup, “he's right, we're screwed.”  
  
Rose stopped beside her and stared up at the screen. They were bathed in vivid butter-yellow light. Even with the polarisation it was harsh and threw their shadows into sharp relief, limning their faces in neon.  
“Rose?”  
“Mm.”  
“I'm really fucking sorry, I did- ah, I couldn't-”  
“No, no it's not your fault. We all agreed to give it a try. You guys didn't have to come here at all, let alone try to save us.”  
“I just... I thought I could handle it, I swear! The numbers-”  
“Forget the numbers,” Rose sighed, “we're passed that now.”  
“Yeah I guess.”  
  
The way Rose faced certain doom with such equanimity was heartbreaking, and the way she refused to hold Roxy responsible only made it worse. They stayed there in silence for a time, but Roxy could sense that something was on Rose's mind still. She had no idea how to get it out of her, nor was she certain she had the right to try after all that had happened.  
“Roxy?”  
“Yeah?”  
“Could I talk to you about... something?”  
Roxy sighed and shuffled on her seat, patting the armrest, “step into my office, hon.”  
Rose took a moment to compose herself. What came next took a while to well up from the heart of her and find full blossom in her chest before expanding out.   
“Roxy, you're pretty much... you're sort of like my mom, aren't you?”  
“Urggh, don't ask me to figure all that shit out, it's all paradox shit. I guess, sort of maybe?”  
“I never really got along with mom- I mean my mom, in my time, you know.”  
“Oh?” Roxy looked up cautiously. Rose was perched on the arm of her chair, still staring ahead.  
“I can't make things right with her now, I think it was too late to do so a long, long time ago anyway. But since we're facing the end now, I just- I- you're the nearest thing, and I feel like it's my last chance to get to know you.”  
“Oh,” Roxy breathed out quietly, “oh I see... I can get that, I suppose it makes a lot of sense. I never thought of myself that way though, I always figured I was too much of a fuck-up to be anyone's      mom, even if the chance ever came up,”  
“Would you mind if- would you put your arm around me?”  
Roxy blinked and slowly, awkwardly, extended an arm to curve around Rose's back, resting her hand on Rose's hip gently. “Like this?”  
“Yes,” Rose leaned over slightly, resting her weight against Roxy and nudging her cheek against Roxy's hair. “I'm sorry we didn't get closer. I wanted to! I just couldn't- it hurt seeing you again.”  
Roxy stared rigidly ahead, her breathing suddenly catching, her heart fluttering. “I understand, it must have felt so weird for you.”  
“It did, but that's no excuse. I was just being selfish and mean, I should have come to you sooner.”  
  
Her words were loaded and Roxy felt that she was talking about more then just the short time they had spent together on a rock flickering through infinite space into the heart of a sun. Roxy began to stroke Rose's hip idly, and drew her a little closer, more securely.  
“It's all right. I know you Rose, you're definitely not selfish.”  
Roxy felt something warm against her and realised that Rose had begun to weep softly against her hair. She stayed quiet, only hugging Rose more tightly as the girl pressed against her and cried.  
“I love you Rose, always.”  
“I love you too,” Rose whispered.  
  
Ahead of them the sun waited, patiently.  
  



End file.
